The questions to ask yourself before making your hobby into a career

The old saying goes that if you love what you do, you never work a day in your life. So it makes sense that we all want to look to do something that we really enjoy. For some people it will be retraining and getting the education that they need to go after their dream job. For more and more people, though, it can mean working for themselves and starting a business out of a hobby. Working for yourself can be a dream for many, as you only have to answer to yourself, and it can end up being lucrative too.

If you have ever thought about working for yourself before, then you’ll know that there are lots of different things to plan and think about. So if you are thinking of going from hobby to business, then here are some things to ask yourself.

Can You Do It Part-Time?

It can be hard to make money from a business right from the start. So it could be a good idea to think about how you are going to make money. Is it a business that you could do alongside your existing job, at least for now? Could you go part-time in your other job until you are making enough to take the business full-time? So make a plan around finances, unless you’ve got enough saved to plunge right into it.

How Profitable Is It?

You have obviously made this as a hobby for yourself and it is something that you enjoy. But you do have to seriously think about how you are going to make money from this. Are there plenty of people that could enjoy this product or service too? What would you need to charge to make it worth it? How much are people willing to pay? All of these questions can help you to decide if it is worth it as a business or not.

How Scalable Is It?

Having a business that has the potential to grow is always going to be a good thing. You don’t have to have plans to move to large offices straight away, but you need to see that the business has that potential. Could you expand the range? Is there scope for more people to join the team? Can you roll out the business all around the world? You may only have one idea to start with, but knowing that there is potential in the business could be the thing that allows you to take the leap to start it.

Marketing The Business?

For people to know about your business, you need to be able to market your business. Will you use a website, attend local fairs, use social media, or just advertise locally? You need to have a plan in place, otherwise no one will know about what you do. Will you use other websites like eBay or Etsy, or will you create your own and work to improve your SEO? All good questions to be asking yourself and planning for.